SOMERVILLE -- After a seven-month probe, investigators seized nearly $400,000 in cash from six massage parlors -- three in the Lowell area -- that were fronts for prostitution and from the two people accused of running them, according to prosecutors.

In Somerville District Court Tuesday, Xiu J. Chen, 32, of Medford, and Ronald Keplin, 57, of Woburn, each pleaded not guilty to charges of trafficking persons for sexual servitude, six counts of deriving support from prostitution and six counts of keeping a house of ill fame.

The human-trafficking charges carry a five-year minimum mandatory prison sentence up to a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Attorney General Martha Coakley said authorities would continue to investigate and more charges could follow.

Judge Neil Walker ordered Chen and Keplin each held on $250,000 cash bail with conditions that they surrender their passports, remain on home confinement, and wear a GPS monitoring bracelet.

A probable-cause hearing is scheduled for June 13 pending a possible indictment of the pair.

The high bail was ordered despite defense attorneys arguing that after investigators seized money from the businesses and froze their personal bank accounts, the business partners are virtually penniless and unable to post bail.

Defense attorney Cheryl McGilvray asked that Keplin be released on $5,000 to $10,000 cash bail, arguing that the Woburn resident lives in an apartment and supports a 15-year-old daughter.

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Chen's attorney, Jacqueline Ellis, asked for personal recognizance for her client, a U.S. citizen, who is married with an 8-year-old son and a 12-year-old daughter.

Ellis said her client denies any "inappropriate operation of her businesses."

But Assistant Attorney General Deb Bercovitz countered by noting that Chen and Keplin earned massive profits with an average of 10 women working in these six massage parlors. About 60 clients a day were serviced over the six locations.

Chen and Keplin could have been in business dating back to 2011, according to Coakley's Office.

The Attorney General's Office named six massage parlors that have been shut down as alleged fronts: Bedford Asian Bodywork, also known as Bedford Wellness Center, at 200 Great Road in Bedford; Billerica Bodywork, also known as Shrine Spa and the Boston Chinese Club, at 572 Boston Road in Billerica; Body Language at 11 Middlesex Ave. in Wilmington; Mystic Health Center in Medford; Body Wellness Center in Reading; and Woburn Wellness Bodywork, also known as Asian Bodywork.

In a press conference at the Wilmington Police Department Monday, Coakley said state police officers assigned to her office, along with local law enforcement and agents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations division, executed search warrants at the six businesses operated by Chen and Keplin.

Chen was arrested in Reading and Keplin in Woburn, both without incident, Coakley said.

Coakley said Chen and Keplin allegedly recruited women from across the Eastern Seaboard to provide sexual services for money.

The pair coordinated recruitment of the women through such sources as Craig's List, advertised sexual services online, set up appointments for the encounters and managed the financial aspects.

The victims, Coakley said, are in their 20s and 30s. She did not identify where the women were originally from although most appear to be Asian. All appear to be in the country legally, but that investigation is continuing.

The two also reportedly arranged for overcrowded housing for the women and handled their transportation to the massage parlors.

Coakley declined to comment on where the women had been housed but said they lived in "deplorable conditions" and were "kept and ordered to go and provide sexual services for pay."

During the probe, investigators questioned customers who visited the business and learned massage parlors were fronts for prostitution, Coakley said.

According to Coakley's office, several other law-enforcement agencies provided assistance in the months-long operation, including the Middlesex Sheriff's Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and police departments from Acton, Burlington and Dracut.

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